What Dreams Are Made Of

This is the Chilliwack River. A combination of snow run-off and rainforest rain make it a pretty fast river. Men stand in it to fish for salmon and women walk its paths.

Scott and I joined our friends for a great fisherman's lunch in our new favourite cafe. We're stalking our baker who closed shop last new years.

It's also called the Vedder River because the two rivers were merged to minimize loss of land as they meandered and changed course. The Chilliwack River Honey land was totally eaten away by the river a few years ago. There are lots of downed trees. But in a rainforest they are not wasted.

Vedder also had a 40%off wool sale. This is the Marble for Emily's Lady Eleanor. I am giving myself 18 months as I did Scott's. But this one won't have to be pieced. It's in a basket by my TV chair. Swatched and cast on, it will have to wait until Tuscany has been completed. I am trying to focus on it's longer and longer rows while listening to Hawaiian music. I knit a whole set while watching Benjamin Button last night. I really enjoyed it eventhough I had to watch it by myself. My friend, J, and I started watching it on New Year's Eve afternoon, but I was called to go home with the Chinese Food. It helped that I had seen some of it because I could focus more on the lace. It was my first really good long chunk of knitting on that pattern. It helps to become intimate with the rhythm.

This great soft wool is destined to be a nephew sweater. That is when I get back on that wagon. Next is a grey gansey. I have the wool and the pattern. But did I mention the silk Tuscany shawl?

I chose this colour changing yarn for a vest like the one J made out of Kaffe Fasset. Much closer to my budget. A quick knit will sometimes inject the knitting joy into the angst.

One of my sisters has already worn out a pair of socks I made her. If I'm going to knit socks anyway, might as well get it on sale.

Some black merino lace. Just in case. You know, I don't have a black shawl and I've knit two. They make the best gift and the most versatile garment. But I don't like knitting in black. That would be for a summer knit.

I updated my Ravelry page and am a bit nervous about the number of WIPs. I can only read two books at a time: one fiction and one non. I usually have one big knitting project and one small. Whew. If I can finish 3 more sets of Tuscany and Northrop Frye's "The Great Code", I can settle down a bit.

Plus I hope to register for Rockin Sock Club. Plus I ordered Driving Miss Daisy gloves from Brenda Dayne at Cast On.

I know. There are many plans and dreams for the 525,600 minutes that will be 2010.

New Years To Do List

1. Take down Christmas decorations and clean up living room
2. Take Vinterblomster mitten off needles and into hibernations (with the Heritage Woodland Shawl) until August.
3. Swatch and cast on Lady Eleanor in turquoise marble to begin Emily's grad blanket for June 2011.
4. Swatch and cast on blues socks (maye not today) as I am only knitting socks at work.
5. Knit on the Tuscany shawl and try to enjoy it's pretty pinkness.

I have decided that, like the shawl, my mittens just took too long to get going. The love is gone. Next month I'm going to Hawaii and need my pink silk shawl. Then it will be an early spring. I may try to knit the matching hat, Selbu Modern, because I could probably use it.
I spent my winter knittng making gifts. That's OK. The mittens were last year's dream and they will be ready when the -as yet not budded- leaves start to fall again.
Why knit against the grain?
I made a big haul at the wool shop yesterday (yay) with details to follow. Met with my best friend for some movie knitting and then home alone with D. This is a big change. One of the benefits of having older children. He was on call, but we still enjoyed some champagne and ambience.
So to the new year. Be kind. Appreciate the clean slate I'm starting with. And let me know if there' s anything I can do to help make it a success.

From My Window

It is common, here in Chilliwack, for the snow to come after Christmas. I was so excited for my snow-loving, snowman-constructing daughter. But she has another 8 hour drumline practice because they're going to the Olympics. She's the only girl in the snare line. I decided that after yesterday's sleep day, I really needed a snow day. I'm going to stay in and knit because I really haven't finished my mitten(s).

I have got a good start, though. Notice the Japanese Rose Garden nail polish. That's from Emily and will make great Hawaii toes in February. This mitten was too difficult for me to knit at work. I think I'll cast on a sock next shift set and just go with it.

The Fleece Artist Lady of the Lake sweater was also too hard because apparently I was playing fast and loose with picking a size. I cast on a small (huge gauge problems) and then proceded to shape a medium. I couldn't even figure it out yesterday. I did knit on it at work a wee bit but just to the 18 inch mark. I have it set up now. We'll see if I did it on purpose.

I quickly knit up a hat for a new friend and a new nurse from London. He had never had Kraft Dinner before, so I cooked some up in the microwave on nights. We were trying to compensate for a brutal work load.

Then I said, "All you need now is a canoe and a toque".

He said, "What is a toque?" and I said, "Oh, man, you just wait."

I cast it on a 3pm when I had woken up and finished it on my break that night. When I put it on his head, he was so excited and said, "Now I can go to Whistler!" What a sweetheart. He handsome and single and is so going to end up with a Canadian wife!

And now to dream of Hawaii in February. I need to finish the silk Tuscany shawl. But I really don't like the silk. It was hard to wrangle it into behavior at the beginning. I feel right now that if I stick to it like it's my only project, I'll get in the groove and it will make itself. But I get really distracted when I try to knit it and start cleaning out the fridge and stuff.

Now I'm brainstorming to set up my goals and wishes for 2010. I want to thank Neuroknitter at We Heart Yarn for this inspiring post .

The poem will be my talisman for the future.

Hope your holidays filled your heart with warmth and joy.

Finally, I want to thank Kal for introducing me to this best of Christmas songs and share it with you. Have a safe and happy New Year!

Christmas Cheer

Merry Christmas. We had a fantastic family gathering for open house lunch. Missed some of my family, of course, but it was fun. We ate more than half the food- quite a feat, quite a feast.
I took the dog for a walk this morning and the sky was so pretty. I rarely use the long lens, and should practice more often.
Mitten knitting this morning. Trying to fall in love with the knitting as much as I was smitten by the mitten pattern. At least I knit loosely- good for colour work.
I work tomorrow, so we'll try to make it a special day for our patients and the other nurses.
Off to church to sing in the choir and then home to watch Alister Sim.
Merry Christmas!

Rallying Comfort

The boy sweaters are done and blocking in the short winter light. I hope the baby cousin has a name now. This Child's Placket Neck Pullover is a wonderful quick knit. With all the baby clothes I have knit in the past and especially recently, I'm happy to have a nice boy knit that churns out quickly and turns out well.

It was soup making day. Winter Italian Minestrone is from Carrie at work. I want to follow her with a notebook to pick up more good recipes, but that would get tangled in the cardiac monitor lines.

The traditional Christmas Eve French Onion soup. Just onions and soup. The secret ingredient is "time". I love slow cooking. The pot was brimming with sweet Wala Wala onions when I started. Hours later, they cooked down and carmelized and drove the kids crazy. "When will it be ready?" We actually had to have a bowl already because it was too full in the pot. You know.

Off to Avatar tonight on the big screen in a theatre in the next town. Nice to have the four of us.

Looking for Comfort

I made chicken noodle soup to take to work and it was so nice to find comfort.

Uncomfortable: too many ducks to count and having them come up on the deck toward me when I go outside. Let loose the dog.

Exciting: two sleeves on one circular. These knit themselves on my breaks during day shift. I figured out the technique for the more challenging and future two socks. This needle was too short and the outside edges are a bit uneven.

The placket neck sweater was so quick in DK that I cast on another in some sock yarn. This is for a cousin whose first baby received a red alpaca kimono. This one had to be at least "nice". I knit on the ferry and from Nanaimo to Victoria on the rainy Malahat Highway, visiting Great Grandma and then fetching Scotty home. Yesterday I joined the sleeves to the body while travelling to a family gathering. Very Christmassy.

I even knit an extra gift, soon to be revealed. Presently cast off and wrapped with the rest.

I am blessed to have the comfort of wool and successful projects. Maybe I'll cast on those mittens again.

Light In the Darkness

This weekend I worked and we had an incredible to team to work together through the craziness. I can't say enough about Captain Dean. Tuesday morning was freezing rain on top of snow and a hairy drive home. Thankfully I wasn't alone and dropped of my team member who lives near my home.
There was not a lot of knitting because we kept calling the resident to deal with our sick peeps.
Last weekend I joined in a mass choir to sing Christmas carols at our very special Catholic church. One friend sent some pictures and I share my favourite with you.
May you have the peace of light and the joy of music.

Catching the Spirit

The weather is on the verge of snow. Here is a picture of snow on the verge. I have crossed off the exhaustive and exhausting list that included baking, cards, shopping, decorating, knitting and wrapping .

I have even finished and wrapped January presents. I hope this sister's incorrigible dial up keeps her from lurking. The two colours are a bit subtle, but suited to her and much warmer. Superwash! This gift should make it through the cleaning unlike last year's.

There was a bit of sun in the front room thismorning to capture the conquering. The Basic Earflap Hat is a bit long on the flaps. I hope it will suffice for feeding the chickens and moving the cattle.

Now there's nothing but hospital shifts and play. I hate slaving in the kitchen and cleaning up exhausting messes when others are having a little holiday of cookies and Christmas videos.

I am a bit overtired, but it's done. I work tomorrow without the fear of not getting the Christmas list done. I can concentrate on my patients. I even have tortiere roll ups to take Saturday night to the nursing unit party.

Then, on Tuesday, I get 10 days of fun.

I don't want to let responsibilities and unreasonable expectations get in the way of catching the Christmas Spirit.

If I Didn't Know Better

These fingerless gloves are making another appearance because when I went to wrap them, I noticed they didn't match. I already had to cut off a bunch of the bottom on one. Now I noticed that only one had one by one ribbing at the top. If I didn't know better, I wouldn't have noticed. If I didn't know better, I wouldn't recognize my darning of ends to easily to get back to the beginning. If I didn't know better, I couldn't pick out my sewn bind off and knit up the ribbing. I guess I'm such a bad knitter because I'm such a good knitter. Or, "I've made that mistake before." One of the delights of Ravelry is the notes that are included in others' project pages. Thanks for sharing your mods and mistakes so I can learn.

I'm redoing the blue hat with fair isle to make it warmer and use the wool. This is the same grey as the gloves, so I had to finish a pattern to get a piece of it. There is no way I can knit this except in good day light.

The blue has a nice variegation of itself.

I also picked back my Hey Teach button band because I should have listened to Alison who said the buttons should be closer. I did make a note, but I didn't read it. I was able to easily pick back the button band and keep the stitches for new placement of holes. Unfortunately I knicked the wool when I cut off the now misplaced buttons and had to reknit that band too.

Whew!

But buttertarts, shortbread and jam jams are made and I'm done baking. This morning I wrapped presents to put under the tree.

Oh yah, yesterday I cleaned up the huge ornament hurricane and decorated the tree. I wonder why I'm tired. If I didn't know better, I'd say it's because I'm neglecting my real life.

First Snow

It snowed on Friday. Just the right amount. The roads were safe and the crisp air was good for dog walking.

Carly loves weather. Rain and storm and wind. I think she imagines herself on a ship off the coast of Labrador.

Paw prints submitted for forensic evidence. If I ever lose her, let me know if you find her. But she doesn't go far from my side.

We were up at the crack of dawn, which is nine in December.

And we walked through the Sto:lo Nation grounds behind us for quiet and space.

We had D's office Christmas dinner which was full of good people and authentic Indian cuisine which is all off my menu.

Saturday was crazy baking of oatmeal cookies for jam jams and taxiing Emily to trumpet Christmas carols at the Santa Lights parade. We then went to a housewarming (and very warm and friendly) dinner party.

Sunday is celebrating Advent at church with extra music. Then a massed choir in town. What a joy. I didn't sing but played flute and drummed (for my dear life). I'll have to contact my flute teacher and thank her eventhough I haven't had lessons for six months. It was pretty reckless and exciting. Our wonderful Lisa is the only choir director who works with jazz.

Tomorrow I'll do my buttertarts and be done.

The chunky scarf is almost done and Emily is knitting for Scott so I can cross that off my list. I had just the wool, too.

Now I will sit and knit for a bit.

Welcome Distractions

I managed to plant a Christmas planter before I went to work. D put the blue lights on the bushes and it was so sweet to come home to. He also edited the Youth Group Christmas skit that I wrote and we taped a few weeeks ago. It was so good to see the finished product and look forward to seeing it on the big screen on Christmas Sunday.

Who knows who is lurking?

I continue to reveal Christmas projects, merrily skipping along. If you see your gift, it's up to you to feign surprise because I have no guilt on that. This is a Pretty Thing in Misty Alpaca hand paint. I could have chosen a yarn to highlight this pattern, but J chose the yarn and I scooped it. It couldn't be softer! I'll make another one in a plain when I get my hands on some.

I chose to use the same Cascade 220 for fingerless gloves for another sister. This simple lace pattern complements the Hermione cables and lace hat that kicked off this giftapalooza of knitting. I now have 3 January birthday presents to knit/finish. And a special gift for my niece's baby, but she won't be seeing that on the blog first.

The horror that is my white knuckle sewing is a not so bad once I get going. I've taken over Scott's room because there is no cleaning up till it's done. This is a Christmas scrub top. I like wearing my jammies to work, but the tops I bought didn't fit so well before I lost weight. I have hopes of simple success. This is a grade eight sewing project after all.

The shortbread is conquered. The oatmeal-date cookies begun and the butter tarts are on deck. Right now the Christmas cards are screaming at me and I can't just work on them tonight because our choir director has once again asked me to play flute on a killer jazzy piece and I need more practice.

Off I go.

Nesting Make Over

The sunroom off our kitchen could be called a breakfast knook. But I have taken up residence because I value sunlight. I have given up calling it my "office" and have switched to the more chaotic appellation of "lab".

My favourite chair is called a "dog and man" chair, but my dog is too big to share and is no longer allowed on the furniture. We got it free when we bought a freezer and it turned out to be "just like" my friend's grandmother's chair that was promised to her. No, it was the actual chair. Whoops. But it is mine now and already needs to be recovered again.

In order to include my husband more in our morning coffee and to open up the space, I finally found the chairs have wanted since we had breakfast in the Denman Street Bread Garden about five years ago.

They are slipper chairs or armless chairs and very comfortable. I found a "roundy" table to put our coffee on.

The dresser is actually a file cabinet. Yay. I have much more stuff to put away and I need to find a flow of yarn in use and in queue. I like to have projects "in play" which means if it is out of sight, it is out of mind. Plus I can take quite a while to come up with the best idea and need little reminders.

The cold weather makes me want to feather my nest. When you come over, we can have our tea in the sunroom now.

Neglected But Not Forgotten

You know those bananas you put in the freezer when they go brown so you can use them in muffins? Well, mine were threatening to take over the kitchen. It was time for action. My recipe uses dessert tofu instead of eggs and they turn out pretty yummy. I made a 4X batch on Sunday.

With the excuse of muffins in the oven, I was able to turn to my Hey Teach as "Primary Knitting". It took a lot of time to put the button bands and collar on. Then on Monday I pieced the sleeves and this morning I finished all the ends. I'm not much of a project knitter, but the soft cotton/wool helped me with the excrutiating process. This sweater clubbed me over the head this summer, but I want to wear it at Christmas for family gatherings and darned if I wasn't going to finish it. Next stop: buttons.

I also reknit the Baby Surprise Jacket so the picked up stitches weren't right on the front by the button holes. This is important when it is a gift for a very thorough nurse whom I care about a lot. She was my mentor last year this time when I was trying to get back to nursing. I can only hope that she'll return soon after having the lovely baby. Any day now.

Flip Flop

Yesterday was beautiful and sunny and quite warm: just a polarfleece top-no jacket required- for walking the dog. Today is grey and cold and very rainy.

The sun tried to warm the wet ground in the local stream beds. We are on flood watch.

These are snow geese or trumpeter swans. My sisters would know which. I was switching back from night shifts and happy to have enough feet left for a good walk.

But I should not be allowed to pick up my knitting. I had dropped a stitch on night shift and picked it up rather poorly. When I finished the sweater- yes bound off and starting to sew the sleeve seams- I was unhappy with the job. First thing in the morning I started "fixing" it. I ripped back to row 64 from 113!!! The whole nights knittings. Man I was disappointed. Still I couldn't give this sweater to a nurse (and my preceptor) when the mistake ended up right on the front. With the baby surprise jacket I'm never sure what's what till the end. Harumph.

Em and I were invited to a baby shower and there was no way we could fit it in. But I said yes and lastnight I knit the baby hat from Leigh Radford's One Skein. Such an amazing book. I'm taking another look at the other projects now.

J picked up the Made in Brooklyn for me at Urban Yarns when she picked up her UBC student. Thanks so much. She'll probably make the first pattern from it. I also got the Patons Street Smart when I stopped in town to get needles. I picked up some chunky wool for Em and she's already knit her boyfriend a great pair of slippers. There's enough to knit a pair for herself, too. She's been home sick. Not the same as homesick. I hope she's better to go to the shower.
That is if the rain hold off.